Matt Campbell is spending Penn State’s bye week attempting to flip 4-star QB Braylen Warren

On Sunday, Penn State and Matt Campbell lost their lone 2027 QB commit, Will Wood, who decided to stay closer to home and flip to Bill O’Brien and Boston College. Wood’s decision was fortuitously timed, as Penn State is on its bye in Week 8 of the 2027 season, and that has reportedly given Campbell time to go offer 4-star QB Braylen Warren in Omaha. 

Nebraska is a familiar recruiting ground for Campbell, who spent the last 10 seasons at Iowa State before leaving for Happy Valley. He’s heading back to attempt to flip Warren, the No. 18 QB in the class out of Omaha Westside, from Eli Drinkwitz and Missouri. 

After a brief foray with Peter Bourque, a top-10 QB in the class who chose James Franklin and Virginia Tech, Campbell and his staff moved on to Wood, the No. 30 QB, who committed in May. Other than Bourque and Wood, Penn State had only offered two other QBs in the 2027 class before this late push with Warren. 

Matt Campbell could be too late to the game to find a Will Wood replacement

The early signing period for the 2027 class opens on December 2. That’s just over 40 days for Campbell to convince Warren, who has been committed to Missouri for nearly a year, to flip his allegiance to the Nittany Lions. And he’s attempting to do it as his program is 0-4 in Big Ten play, Missouri is in the mix in the SEC, has a top-10 win on its resume this season, and has quarterback Austin Simmons playing like an NFL prospect 

In the 2025 class, Drinkwitz went into Pennsylvania and plucked out four-star QB Matt Zollers, but the Tigers have relied on the transfer portal to land their starting QB in each of the last two seasons, with Beau Pribula in 2025 and Simmons this year. 

That may be what Penn State has to do this offseason, as Rocco Becht is exhausting his final season of eligibility and Campbell is refusing to play redshirt freshman Alex Manske. Regardless of who starts for the Nittany Lions in 2027, however, adding a QB in the 2027 class will be critical because Manske, Kase Evans, and Jack Lambert are the only QBs on the roster with remaining eligibility, after Peyton Falzone transitioned to tight end, and none have playing experience. 

Penn State has a high-upside swing in 2028 with in-state four-star James Armstrong, but that’s a long way off, and it’s always good to have more bite at the apple. Flipping Warren won’t be easy, but it’s a worthy endeavor, as Warren is ranked as the No. 229 overall player in the class and was an Elite 11 Finalist. 

The only problem is that when you add up Penn State’s relative desperation, the tight timeline, the program’s lack of momentum, and Missouri’s recent success, it becomes clear pretty quickly that Penn State is probably going to have to overpay relative to the market to pull this off. But if Campbell and general manager Derek Hoodjer believe he can be their starting quarterback one day, they may be willing to pay that premium. 

Braylen Warren is Matt Campbell’s kind of quarterback

Braylen Warren is a slightly undersized, efficient QB with a sturdy frame, good mobility, and great touch as a downfield passer. That’s the type of QB Campbell tends to go after, dating back to his success with Brock Purdy. 

Now, betting on a quarterback without elite physical traits is a gamble because that player is typically not going to have a tremendously high ceiling. However, if Warren can learn to process at a high level, he has enough ability to be a Power 4 starting QB, even if the lack of horsepower as a thrower could limit his upside. 

Warren’s touch is his best trait as a passer, and if you can pair that with accuracy and anticipation, which Warren seems to do, it’s often better than having a cannon for a right arm. He’s rightfully ranked well above Wood in the 2027 class and would become the most intriguing underclassman in the QB room, surpassing Evans.

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